Preface:

Quantum Entanglement has been demonstrated by physicists. The Big Bang is a theory, but generally agreed upon by physicists. The unproven idea that entanglement extends its effects beyond the sub-atomic to the macroscopic world and is fundamental to the universe has been discussed by some scientists. This post serves merely to present one of a vast number of opinions… concerning the nature of our universe.

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Two Particles are said to be entangled when the measurement state of one allows for the state of the other to be known. Einstein called it “Spooky-Action-At-A-Distance”. This phenomenon is independent of distance. Particles as a result of their collision or interaction, may become entangled by a mechanism as yet not understood and then act as if one particle. Essentially at a distance there is no transference of information between them…they become one particle for all intent and purposes. Physical properties such as position, momentum, spin, polarization, energy, and time have been proven in the lab to be correlated among entangled particles. Knowing the characteristic of one particle allows instant knowledge of the other… even across a vast distance. This phenomenon was predicted by The Quantum Theory and has been proven by experimentation with distances in the kilometers to date.

The seemingly limitless ability of the human imagination and that of the study of mathematics have led to many theories about our world, some of which were only much later proven to be correct. Due to the very nature of entanglement creating the interdependency of all things in the universe, scientists are able to predict by drawing inference from their discoveries and hence to extrapolate and formulate new theories in turn, which are initially unable to be proven by experiment. Simply by knowing the characteristics of one thing another thing can be inferred due to their relationship or interdependency. This is the beauty of entanglement.

At the time of the Big Bang, entanglement could be said to have provided the mechanism where by sub-atomic particles at the quantum level were created and further became differentially associated as simple atoms which in turn served as the primordial building blocks in the creation of the universe. As such building blocks in our world are so prevalent it would stand to reason that entanglement does not abruptly end at the quantum level but that it extends to the macroscopic world as a mechanism governing all interactions in the universe.

Erwin Schrodinger, one of the early advocates of Quantum Theory, and who also coined the name “entanglement” said the following: “I would not call entanglement one but rather the characteristic trait of quantum mechanics.” Not only does atomic matter become entangled; whole systems may become entangled, too. “Physicists now believe that entanglement between particles exists everywhere, all the time, and have recently found shocking evidence that it affects the wider, ‘macroscopic’ world that we inhabit.”

Entanglement could be described as being “the interdependency of everything” both at a macroscopic level and at a sub-atomic level in our universe. Without its contribution the universe may not have been created. It may be the mortar between the building blocks. It is possible that entanglement creates and connects up the space-time continuum from smaller components which have characteristics vastly different than the observable whole. For example at the quantum level space-time has no meaning. Theoretically, if Quantum Entanglement as proven by experiments can take place between distances in space instantly then it would logically follow that such would be also apply to time as well. This would leave open the intriguing possibility that information could transcend the past, present and future. It may also imply that our world is but a construct of pure consciousness. Matter, time and space would then be described as constructs of consciousness. What would the nature of consciousness be then …a complex and coordinated dynamic arrangement of energy differentially arranged by the process of entanglement… essentially, organized information giving rise to the creation of a multidimensional reality which we in turn experience within a conscious universe.

 

 

 

We must become a multi-planetary species. Our fate in the cosmos will be determined by how soon we are able to follow in the path of our robotic explorers, Voyager, Galileo and Cassini. It is imperative that we push on at a more rapid pace toward the related discoveries of space travel and space health before governmental spending is too overwhelmed by the costs of remedying the ailments of a sadly mismanaged Earth.

Directed and sufficient funds must now be allocated by government and not only left up to rich entrepreneurs, to facilitate more rapid discoveries which are related to our autonomous and sustained habitation of space. It is not enough to provide more funds but to also promote an overall “world plan” and to instill cooperation by all businesses and countries. In this manner our resources as a whole will be best used and prevent needless wastage of time, effort and money. This endeavour must be paralleled at the same time with a unified and significant effort of sustaining our beautiful Earth. It is imperative that these two tasks have no borders, no longer to be considered an unspoken race of supremacy. We no longer have the luxury of time to be involved with the comparatively petty rivalries of competition. Our long term continued existence and all that we have thus far accomplished is now at risk.

It has been criticized that had we not taken the route of developing the Space Station so extensively, we would have probably sent humans to Mars by now. There is argument for both cases, hind-site playing a big part. In any case the goal should now be at establishing outposts beyond Earth, served only to be “stepping stones” to a next world that is habitable for man. Terraforming Mars is a long term and expensive project that some say could take a 1000 years to accomplish. This may not be immediately, or ever required depending on the developments in space travel in the near future. What is important is that we go to Mars with the idea of establishing a liveable environment for a limited number of  specialists, not a large population. These pioneers will have the task of building the next space vehicle which will propel man to our next home.

As was commented of the Space Station, let it not be said that too many resources were spent on long term endeavours such as terraforming Mars. Let us be more focused and unified in the future on the goals of developing new forms of space travel, finding solutions for the related physical and health consequences of low gravity and radiation in space and choosing a world more easily and less expensively developed to sustain our existence, other than Mars. Many scientists say that Titan, a moon of Saturn is the nearest and best candidate.

 

 

 

 

Bahtinov Mask created by 3D printing. (Thanks Benny Fab Laboratory at Benny Library)

 

       Bahtinov Mask 3D printing video (Thanks to the Benny Fab Lab at Benny Library)

The Bahtinov Mask is one of the best tools for focusing your camera-telescope setup for imaging. Although not very expensive to buy, it can be made by hand using cardboard or a ridged thin plastic using a template or pattern…Home Made Bahtinov Focusing Mask & Templates, a good article on Deep-Sky Watch.com . Another method would be to create the mask by 3D printing, not as daunting of a process as you might think…

3D printers can be used free of charge in various educational institutions and libraries, accompanied by expert guidance. The size of the object printable is limited by the particular 3D printer used and the material used to print the object. Programs such as Openscad, Tinkercad and Blender are free software, downloadable online. A template for the model will be required in order to 3D print your object. The learning curve is a little steep but the internet and especially U-Tube provides many tutorials. For those of you who rather not start from scratch creating the model, there are free models online for many diverse types of objects including the Bahtinov Mask. Free models can be found using the STL Finder.

To 3D print the Bahtinov Mask as shown in the images above, I used Opencad a free software and a ready-made tweakable template or model called Bahtinov mask generator (modded) which I found on Thingiverse.com .This model generator allowed for the size of the mask to be adjusted according to the measurements of my own telescope. The resultant SCAD file can be exported as a STL file (in the Openscad software) which is then in a file format usable by most 3D printers, in this case the Ultimaker 3. The material used to print the mask was PLA (Poly Lactic Acid), an organic biodegradable thermoplastic made from cornstarch and sugarcane.

The hobby of amateur astronomy leads us down many related paths of further learning…the process of 3D printing is just another. Good luck with the creations for your telescope…to excuse a pun…the sky is the limit!

 

 

 

 

 

Since man’s first step’s on the Moon in 1969 and to present day, with such discoveries as those attributed to Voyager, Hubble and Cassini, the stage has been set for more rapid and ground breaking advances in the technology of space travel. The contributing factors which will spur on this change are both positive and negative in nature…facilitating and also pushing the human intellect to perform.

 

The current population on Earth in 2017 is 7.6 billion. The species extinction rate is between 200 to 2,000 a year which also has a chain reaction affect on the environment. The search for new antibiotics cannot keep up with new resistant microbial strains.  Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is increasing 100 times faster than at the end of the last ice age. Resultant climate changes, storms, heat waves, flooding, famine and epidemics have not been mitigated by humanitarian efforts or international governmental aid. Ironically, despite our technological know how, we lack the will to perform good housekeeping on the very soil upon which we were conceived and nurtured. The Earth has been plundered with indifference and we have provided only token resolve towards vital and necessary change.

The concern for the quality of future life on Earth, afflicted with these problems is one but not the only driving force which will spur on human space exploration at a faster pace. Since the last 15 years Nasa has singly led the way in this endeavour restricted by governmental funding. However within the last few decades, rich entrepreneur enterprises such as SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin not to mention at least 200 related smaller start-ups have come into existence. Space craft technology is the new silicon valley of our time. The lure of space tourism will attract more and more people eventually bringing down the fare of space travel.  At this stage, space vehicle technology will soar as more money will be available and not limited as in the past by governmental control.

Since the Industrial Revolution, we have polluted our world and since then with really no significant abatement. Based on history, it may in fact be a lot easier to effect co-operation in the field of space travel between businesses, spurred on by the lucrative rewards of monetary gain rather than between nations on a larger scale, trying to co-operate on regulating pollution emissions, the rewards of which may not be as immediately luring and tangible. Thus the orchestrated push for human habitation in space may well be our last hope for our survival unless drastic and immediate change regarding the environment is agreed upon by all nations…a prayer we all have in common.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The only truth of which we can be certain with regard to life in the universe is that Earth is surely abundant with it. Life can adapt and thrive in many harsh environments from hot geysers to the sun deprived locations deep within our oceans. Common to the existence of life at least as we know it, is a requirement which is that of water…the life-blood of the universe…the vehicle by which organic molecules combine, through which life forms move and nutrients are absorbed.

Beyond Earth, the closest world to us, The Moon, has water and it is thought, a lot of it. The water on the surface is enclosed in volcanic glass beads formed billions of years ago when magma erupted from the Moon’s interior.  Was some of it brought by comets or asteroid bombardment …possibly but this is only one source. The water in this encapsulated form can be found throughout the lunar surface. The quantity of water on the lunar surface in this captured volcanic form is estimated to be about 1 quart per cubic meter. The water bearing volcanic beads imply that this water originated from deep within the the interior of the Moon. Water in the form of ice has been found by Nasa radar by an Indian Moon probe. It found evidence of 600 million metric tons of actual water ice spread out on the bottom of the craters at the north lunar pole. Trace amounts of water molecules have also been found above the moon’s surface as well. Nasa found using Nasa Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter data that the coldest places near the moon’s south pole are the brightest places which might indicate surface frost. All of this data goes a long way in implying that the moon may have had an atmosphere of its own at one time.

In our solar system there are several worlds that are thought to contain water as ice or water vapour such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Mercury shows signs of iced over craters and as discovered by Nasa’s Curiosity Mars Rover, an ancient martian riverbed indicates that once water flowed on it surface.

Europa, Calisto and Ganymede, Jupiter’s moons, show strong evidence of liquid water below their surface as well as essential chemicals to sustain life. In fact Ganymede is thought to have a salt water ocean. Saturn’s moon Europa and Enceladus have not only liquid water but the other factors thought essential for life to exist…essential chemical elements and energy sources.

With the study of exoplanets, the Kepler data confirm the planets about the size of our earth could be entirely covered in water. The Tess mission upcoming will search such exoplanets and the James Webb Space telescope will examine their atmospheres.

Regarding our Moon the question arises…what amount of water could be lurking below its surface and in what form…the answer is a lot and in the form of liquid water quite possibly as in the case of Enceladus for instance, where active geysers spraying water ice particles and water vapor from below its surface give testament to water a plentiful beyond our Earth.

No wonder why Nasa has planned sometime in 2020 to revisit our nearest neighbour. The lunar south pole will be of special interest because the south pole is unique in that sunlight does not reach the botton of the craters which act as permanent cold traps that could reveal a fossil record of the early solar system. Nasa’s Lunar Ice Drill will bore the south pole for analysis during this lunar revisit.

Acquiring the technology to harvest water on the moon and elsewhere will be a crucial step to accomplishing the future goals of Nasa. Its task will be to lay the framework of a moon orbiting space station that will later be serviceable in future interplanetary exploration. As Early as 2033 scientists invision a manned space flight to Mars as a direct result of Nasa’s Orion Program to come.

 
Further Reading: Brown University
Researchers create first global map of water in Moon’s soil
Sept 13,2017